Jane's Walk
A local person leads a walk through a neighbourhood with three to seven stops, and at each stop starts a conversation rather than giving a lecture. Walkers bring their own knowledge of the place, and the leader invites them to talk about what they see, remember and worry about. The walk is free, non-commercial and open to anyone.
Use when a team, a community or a mix of residents and officials needs to talk about a real place together, on site, before a plan or decision is made about it.
Solves: Plans for a neighbourhood are discussed in a meeting room by people who do not walk there, while the people who do are not asked.
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Step 1: Choose a theme and a route with three to seven stops that each raise a question (prep).
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Step 2: Open with introductions and the theme; make clear it is a conversation, not a tour (5 min).
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Step 3: At each stop, say two or three sentences about the place and ask the group a question about it (5-10 min per stop).
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Step 4: Walk between stops at an easy pace so people can talk in pairs (5-10 min per leg).
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Step 5: End at a place where people can sit and gather what they heard (10-15 min).
- Pick an accessible route with resting points and check it for traffic and toilets.
- Invite a few people who know the place well (long-time residents, shop owners) and let them speak.
- Keep the group small enough to hear each other on a street; above 25 people use a portable amplifier or split up.
- Theme walks: walk the route of a planned project with residents and decision-makers together.